Jakarta: Saina Nehwal's quest to become the first Indian world champion in badminton ended in heartbreak as she lost in straight games to title holder Carolina Marin in the summit showdown of the mega-event here on Sunday.

The world No. 2 went down 16-21, 19-21 to her numero uno nemesis from Spain in a match which lasted 59 minutes. It was the second successive loss in a major final for Saina even though the silver medal she settled for is the best performance by an Indian in the showpiece event.

Saina had incidentally lost to the same opponent at the All England Championships final earlier this year.

This was India's fifth medal at the World Championships after P. V. Sindhu clinched the bronze twice in 2013 and 2014 and Jwala Gutta and Ashwini Ponnappa notched up a bronze in women's doubles at the 2011 edition.

Prakash Padukone was the first Indian to win a bronze at the 1983 edition.

With a 3-1 head-to-head record over the Spaniard going into the match, Saina had the edge on paper. But the gritty Spaniard, who got the better of Saina in the All England finals in their most recent encounter, seemed more pumped up when the proceedings started.

Clenching her fists and letting out a scream at almost every point won by her, Carolina caught the chair umpire's attention more than once for her antics and was even cautioned for abusing her racquet.

Play was often halted by Chinese umpire Zheng Sanliang, who appeared to be involved in the action as much as the players. Time and again Zheng warned Carolina for flicking sweat away from her body, over-celebrating, taking too long between points and even racket abuse when the Spaniard stopped short of thumping the ground upon losing a point.

Saina was also targeted by the official but the players seemed to sense it was best just to ignore or claim they could not hear her in the noisy Istora Senayan arena and decided to play on regardless in the second game.

The world No.1 made sure that the scorecard ticked in her favour after breaking away from 7-7 when Saina sunk an easy return into the net. Placed comfortably at 11-8 when the lemon break was taken, Carolina made it 15-9 in no time, courtesy errors by Saina and some precisely-placed shots from the baseline.

The beleaguered Indian found it tough to deal with her rival's energy and floundered when challenged on pace.

In fact, the fierce smashes, which are a hallmark of Saina's game, came from Carolina's racquet, the most impressive being the one with which she earned her first game point.

Down 13-20, Saina held on for a few points before Carolina closed out the first game when the Indian hit one wide after 24 minutes.

In the second game, however, the Indian came back strongly to start with, inducing regular errors from the aggressive Spaniard. The Indian led 11-6 at the break, riding on a much improved performance in baseline rallies.

But refusing to be bogged down, Carolina, who was far more adventurous than the Indian when it came to approaching the net, recovered with six back-to-points to make it 12-12.

Moving around the court with amazing pace, the Spaniard quite literally tired the Indian with her unrelenting returns, targeting Saina's body with stunning precision.

But it was no stroll in the park for Carolina as Saina held on for some engrossing rallies in a battle of attrition.

Locked at 17-17, while Carolina looked consistently fired up, Saina's body language did not seem very positive as her rival took a 20-18 lead to inch towards her second successive world title.

The inevitable was delayed when Carolina squandered the first championship point before clinching the second and collapsing on to the floor in sheer joy and relief.

On the other hand, a disappointed Saina walked off the court quietly having missed yet another golden opportunity.

In the semi-final, Saina notched up a 21-17, 21-17 win over Indonesia's Lindaweni Fanetri.

In the men's section, China's Chen Long produced a fitting display for a top seed and defending champion to claim a second straight world title with a pulsating 21-14, 21-17 victory against Malaysian Lee Chong Wei on Sunday.

Lee has topped the world rankings for a record 298 weeks during a long and illustrious career but once again came up short against a Chinese player at the top of his game in a fourth World Championship final defeat in as many matches.

Chen has replaced Lin Dan as the top male player following his breakthrough world title triumph a year ago and the 26-year-old has also replaced his compatriot as Lee's arch nemesis after repeating last year's win over the Malaysian. (Agencies)